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We are celebrating our 5th year of podcasting here at MTA! Those of you who have followed our story know that Angie and I now do MTA as our full time gig. This means that things are about to get REAL!

In addition to putting out more episodes every month we are channelling all of our effort into helping our members reach their running goals. Now’s a great time to join the Academy . . . and we are offering an anniversary promo price. See linked video for details.

Davonda Williams balances raising her daughter, fulfilling her job and maintaining her fitness as she aims to finish half-marathons in the U.S. and Europe.

By Henry Howard

Ask Davonda Williams about how she got started running and she laughs. Williams then goes on to explain about a man she used to date who was “always talking about his ex-girlfriend” who was a runner.

“And it started to irritate me,” Williams says cheerfully. “So the first 5K I signed up for was more about me being able to say, ‘Hey, I can run too!’ I am going to show him. And show her. And show everybody.” Continue Reading →

The busy father of five balances his commitments to family, work and of course running — as he teaches his children about exercise, wellness and perseverance.

By Henry Howard

Like many runners, Nathan Maxwell started the sport to get in shape. He ran a few 5Ks and was hooked. So he went up in distance, again like many runners, to see if he could do a half-marathon.

That was 2012.

Since then, Maxwell has charted his own path though he deviated from the natural path. The next step was not a full marathon. Instead, the Augusta, Georgia, resident went right to ultra distances, where he found his passion and excelled at those long races. Continue Reading →

In this special 5 Year Anniversary episode we reach deep into the MTA vault and bring you one of our most popular and inspiring episodes from the early days. Here’s the backstory,

Rewind to 2011.

We just finished the Little Rock Marathon in Little Rock, Arkansas, our first race recap episode. This was my first half marathon. I was previously a total non-runner, desk potato.

Angie was building her fitness back after having a baby. Angie’s sister Autum Danzer (now Autum Haley) joined us to talk about running her first marathon and how it changed her life. The MTA podcast was only 32 episodes old.

Now I invite you to take a pictorial journey with us from that moment to this. And remember . . . Continue Reading →

Steve Yee coined the term with his marathon friends and has presided over the growth of the popular group of yellow-clad runners since 2003.

By Henry Howard

Steve Yee’s running passion started innocently enough. In 1983, Yee learned of the Seattle Mariners Fun Run, an 8-mile run that included four tickets to a ball game.

“With a few weeks training I was able to complete it without stopping so I got really excited, started training more and signed up for races every single weekend after that,” he says. “With each race more challenges emerged, I started running half marathons and finally took the plunge with my first marathon six months after the Mariners Fun Run.”

Turn the clock ahead 20 years and many marathons later, Yee was having lunch with Chris Warren, Tony Phillippi, Sue Fauerbach and Terry Watanabe after — of course — a marathon. The runners talked about how many marathons they ran throughout the year. Friendly oneupsmanship took over as the runners started throwing out race after race that they would do.

At one point, Yee said,

“I feel like I’m amongst a bunch of Marathon Maniacs.”

The name stuck, and Yee, Warren and Phillippi became the original founders and co-presidents of the most popular marathon group active today. Continue Reading →

Runners whose goal is just to finish a marathon only need a very simple training tool. It’s a check list.

“Did I do my long run this weekend, yes or no?”

But if you’re training for a marathon with a different goal in mind – like qualifying for Boston – your training plan will be more complex. And that means you’ll need better analysis tools, too. Continue Reading →

Hal Elrod is a motivational speaker, success coach and best-selling author of The Miracle Morning -The not so Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform your Life Before 8 a.m..

At 20 years of age Hal was hit head on by a drunk driver traveling 70 mph. Despite being clinically dead for 6 minutes, spending 6 days in a coma and being told he would never walk again, Hal made a comeback and went on to become a runner and even complete an ultra-marathon. Hal lives in California with his wife and 2 children. Continue Reading →

For some, finishing a marathon is the ultimate achievement in running. It’s a worthy goal and one that less than 1 percent of the adult population achieves.

Right now, a dozen runners are going on an epic multi-marathon challenge across the United States. They are participating in the Race Across USA, which is literally what they are doing — from California through the southern part of the United States to Washington, D.C.

It’s a 140-day journey, with 120 planned days of running and 3,080 miles. They will run 112 marathons during that time.

Darren Van Soye is the creator and organizer of Race Across USA, along with his wife, Sandy. He is running the entire race so she is taking on the primary role of race director, handling logistics and everything else that comes up along the way. Continue Reading →

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What Members are Saying

“Hey Angie & Trevor, just finished my first full marathon in 3:52:15 and wanted to say thanks. The podcast, academy and the MTA member’s chat has been inspirational, informative and very supportive through my training program and during my race.” -John M.

“Philadelphia marathon! New PR by 8 minutes. Super awesome race. I honestly think that was the best marathon I have ever been a part of. Full recap to come this week. Angie, thank you for all the training and speed work you have put me through this year. Its really paying off.” -Chris M.

Thanks so much for all the advice and support, I completed my first Marathon on Saturday and being part of the MTA community was such a big help! Steve L.

“Thank you Angie for all your excellent coaching and help! First marathon complete. Training and now running the marathon really has changed my perspective on a lot of things. It’s hard, but once you conquer it, anything is possible :)” Sakina N.